ANDY TURNER
Former Tottenham, Portsmouth, Crystal Palace, Wolves, Rotherham and Rochdale player, and the subject of our film.
In 1992, Andy became the Premier League’s youngest goalscorer and is still 8th on the all time list, some 35 years later.
Andy’s career began brightly but as we will hear, his journey was marred by injury, managerial changes, depression and ultimately resilience in having to carve out another pathway in his life. He now gives back by working in youth development and we will hear about his motivation for this after all he’s been through.
It’s a story that will make you laugh, cry, shake your head in disbelief and ultimately feel a sense of positivity for the future.
Gary Mabbutt MBE
The first time Andy has been back to Tottenham since leaving in the mid-90s and he was delighted to meet up with his former captain and club ambassador, Gary Mabbutt MBE.
Aside from catching up with one another’s lives, Andy and Gary talked about their memories of joining Spurs, Andy’s time at the club and that goal.
Gary also presented Andy with his Legacy certificate and told him “Your number is 597. Number 596 is Darren Anderton and number 599 is Teddy Sheringham.” He was certainly in great company!
We extend our thanks to Tottenham Hotspur Football Club for organising the visit.
TONY POTTS
Former FA Youth Cup winner with Tottenham Hotspur in 1990 and part of a crop of youth players that included Ian Walker, Jamie Rednapp, Nick Barmby and Sol Cambell all destined for the big time before a devastating injury robbed him of the chance to make the step up into the first team.
Tony wrote an account of his own journey, called ‘Losing My Spurs’, which is well worth reading for any young players, their family networks and youth coaches - the message is a powerful one and Tony’s own story will be very important within the context of our film.
Tony caught up with us from his narrow boat on the Shropshire Union Canal and you can follow his boating adventures on his YouTube channel Same Ship, Different Day.
JAMIE DAY
Jamie has managed at League 1, League 2 and non-league clubs as well as internationally with Andy Turner in Bangladesh. In his own playing days, he was an Arsenal and England youth player but we will hear about how he made the move into coaching after his own setbacks and barriers forced him to re-evaluate his path.
Jamie is good mates with Andy and we chatted to him in Welling, where he and Andy both grew up and honed their early skills on the local playing fields and pitches.
You can find Jamie on Linkedin.
JOHN SHERIDAN
John is something of a legend and one of the nicest guys in football. He was a highly respected physio for Luton Town FC and then Tottenham Hotspur FC, working under both David Pleat and Terry Venables.
John’s book ‘The Limping Physio’ is a brilliant read and we’d recommend it for anyone wanting a glimpse behind the scenes of all levels of football in the 80s and early 90s.
Having treated Andy, Tony Potts and (most famously) Paul Gascoigne, John’s recollections and insight will be hugely valuable to our film. John describes himself as an unpaid psychologist to players during his time and that’s backed up by what others have told us about him.
Harry Huckstepp
Harry was a coach at the famous Senrab FC, youth production line responsible for John Terry, Ledley King and Sol Campbell among many others.
His memories of Andy as a youth player are clear as day and he speaks about Andy’s supportive family, his unrivalled talent and his lack of surprise when Andy broke through into the first team at Spurs.
A proper football man, Harry was Andy’s first name on the list of people he wanted involved in Life Goals.
GARETH DACE
If you love your football nostalgia, definitely pick up Gareth’s wonderful book ‘Is Gascoigne Going to Have a Crack? Spurs in the 90s, Magic, Mayhem and Mediocrity’.
It’s proven to be a valuable resource for our film and Gareth is incredibly kind and helpful in providing contacts as well as his own memories of Andy’s time at the Club.
As well as being something of a super-fan, outside of his 9-5 job Gareth also works with the Club as a commentary for blind supporters. Oh, and in his spare time he also has a Spurs podcast!
WESLEIGH FLETCHER
Providing us with a more up to date perspective, Wes Fletcher joins us to chat about his time on the youth books of Liverpool and Man Utd, before embarking upon a playing career across the 2010s that took in Burnley, Grimsby Town, Stockport, Accrington Stanley, Crewe Alexandra, Yeovil Town, York City, Motherwell and TNS.
Wes now works in finance at a top Liverpool hotel and his is a story that will bring home the reality of coping with the pressure after suffering career-affecting injury and how he reinvented himself for a life outside of football.
JOSHUA MABBLEY
One of Andy’s protégés, Josh was picked up by Hednesford Town FC having impressed in a trial. Being just 15, and before he could even register for the club’s youth development program, Josh made his first team debut.
His own journey is just beginning and he tells us how he finds working with Andy, if he knew his back story and what he thinks about Andy’s role after his own playing career.
You can follow Josh’s progress on the Hednesford Town FC website and social media.